Chef Stephen’s – Taste of Spring

Kia Ora everyone! Well, spring is at long last here! We’ve made it through the cold and wet winter months, daylight saving is around the corner and everywhere flowers are slowly starting to blossom and you can tell that wonderful promise of summer in the air.

It’s all kind of glorious… and must I add it’s so lovely to start eating lighter, fresher kai with different flavours. Here’s an easy, peasy quick recipe made with crispy good oldGranny Smith Apples. Dark and sticky caramel, sweet apples and crisp pastry combine to make this heavenly French dessert. Serve immediately with a dusting of icing sugar and as mentioned further on, a scoop of french vanilla ice cream… …pure decadence!

TARTE TATIN Serves 4-6

Ingredients

75g Butter (cubed)

300g Castor sugar

6 Granny Smith apples (peeled, cored and halved or quartered)

½ tsp Chinese Five Spices

Pastry

65g icing sugar

100g unsalted butter (cubed and softened)

1 large egg (beaten)

225g plain flour

Method

The pastry can be made either in a food processor or by hand.

Add the icing sugar to the butter and mix together well, then add the egg and mix again. Add a pinch of salt then slowly add the flour and keep mixing until the ingredients are just combined. Wrap the pastry and chill for at least an hour.

Put a 30 cm ovenproof frying pan over a low heat, melt the butter and sugar together and cook for 4-5 minutes to a light caramel colour.

Add the apples and five spice and cook gently until the juice comes out of the apple. Turn up the heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until the apples are soft (about 15-20 minutes). They will give off lots of liquid which you will need to bubble away so that the caramel sticks to the apples.

Take the pan off the heat and cool.

Heat the oven to 200C/fan. Remove the pastry from the fridge for 5 minutes to make it easier to roll. Roll out so that it will fit the pan, then lay on top of the apples, tucking down the edges slightly.

Bake for 15 minutes or until the pastry is golden. Flip the pan over onto a plate taking care with the hot caramel. Or, slice the Tatin in the pan, lift out with a cake slice and serve with the apples face up on the plate.

Yummy French Vanilla ice-cream is the perfect accompaniment. Bon appetit!

By Stephen Kapai Wilson

“I write for this magazine because I am passionate about Life, People and Good Kai!”